Two brothers who were the supreme leaders of Los Zetas cartel are currently facing a possible life term in prison or a death sentence if they are convicted of the numerous charges against them filed against them by U.S. prosecutors. Earlier this year, the U.S. government designated Los Zetas, who have rebranded as Cartel Del Noreste (CDN), as one of six Mexican cartels as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTO).
Miguel Angel “Z-40” Trevino Morales and his brother Omar “Z-42” Trevino Morales appeared before a U.S. federal judge in Washington D.C., for their arraignment. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, a federal judge formally notified them that they were named in a criminal indictment charging them with multiple murder conspiracies, conspiring to manufacture and distribute large quantities of cocaine and marijuana, using firearms in drug trafficking crimes, and conspiring to launder monetary instruments. The two men will remain in federal custody awaiting trial and, due to their charges, face a possible death sentence or a life term in prison.
Los Zetas began as the armed wing of the Gulf Cartel. In 2011, the group split from that cartel and established their own criminal organization. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, in October 2012, Z-40 took over the cartel and ran it until his arrest in 2013. After that arrest, Z-42 took over the organization until his arrest in 2015. Shortly after taking over the Zetas, the Trevino brothers rebranded their organization as the Cartel Del Noreste as a way to distance themselves from the mass killings and thousands of forced disappearances as well as terrorist attacks attributed to Los Zetas.
Los Zetas were behind a series of mass killings in the border state of Coahuila, exposed by Breitbart Texas. The vicious cartel used ovens and drums to incinerate more than 300 victims from the town of Allende. Mexico’s government initially covered up the case.
Prosecutors claim that in their role as leaders of Los Zetas, the Trevino brothers were behind murders, assaults, kidnappings, assassinations, and acts of torture.
As Breitbart Texas reported, even after their arrests, both Trevino brothers had spent years running their empire from inside the protection of a Mexican prison as they fought extradition attempts. It wasn’t until earlier this year that U.S. President Donald J. Trump threatened Mexico’s government with tariffs over their poor efforts in fighting drug cartels. As a result of Trump’s threats, Mexico sent 28 drug lords to the U.S., including the Trevino brothers.
As Breitbart Texas revealed, Mexico’s government skipped through the extradition process. It simply transferred the 28 drug lords who were in prison to the U.S. government, citing national security laws and claiming that corrupt Mexican judges were preparing to release them. Under a regular extradition process, Mexico typically requires the U.S. to waive the death penalty.
Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist with the Breitbart News Foundation. He co-founded Breitbart News Foundation’s Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and senior Breitbart management. You can follow him on Twitter and on Facebook. He can be contacted at
Brandon Darby is the managing director and editor-in-chief of Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart News Foundation’s Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and senior Breitbart management. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook. He can be contacted at
